Bearing support



- BEARING surrom' Original Filed April 11, 1939 7 v 7 ATTORNEY IPatented Aug. 27, 1946 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Thomas G. Myers, LosAngelesC'alif, assignorjto U. S. Electrical Motors, Inc., Los Angeles,Calif., a corporation of California Original application April 11, 1939,Serial No; 267,239. Divided" and this application March 29, 1943, SerialNo. 480,959 a Claims. (01. ate-1st) This invention relates to bearingsupports for Vertical shafts and lubrication thereof, such, for example,as vertical motor shafts adapted to be directly coupled to a verticalpump shaft.

This application is a division of an application entitled Metered oilcontrol, filed in the name of Thomas G. Myers on April 11, 1939, SerialNo. 267,239.

The bearings for such shafts are usually of the ball bearing type, theballs of which are placed in an oil well, or a little above it. Therotation of the shaft with its attached parts causes. a turbulence inthe oil such that the oil is passed upwardly through the spaces betweenthe rolling elements. Often provisions are made to produce a liftingeffect on the oil to cause it to pass through the bearings, as by arotating element attached to the shaft.

t s an object of this invention to make it possible to observe thecirculation of the oil during operation of the motor.

It is still another object of the invention to provide a driveconnection between the motor shaft and the pump shaft, such that thedesired relative axial adjustment of the pump runners with respect tothe rotor may be accomplished.

It is a still further object of this invention to providesupporting'means for the pump shaft which will permit axial adjustmentof the pump shaft'to be readily accomplished while the pump is inoperation, for ensuring that the pump runners will be in the optimumaxial position with '2 a corresponding upper coupling member 8, as bythe aid ofone or more dowel pins, 9. This coupling member 8 has .aflange l0 telescopingover a cylindrical surface I l formedon thecoupling member 5, and also has a hub portion l2 securely fastened tothe inner shaft l3 which carries the pump runner below the verticalmotor structure.

The couplingmember 8,may beheld in place as, for example, by a nutMthreaded on the end I5 01 thefsh'aft I3, a key l6 isbeing provided toprevent the coupling member 8 rotating with respect to they shaft, butpermitting. relative axial adjustment between them.

The rotor 'l, is indicated as of thesquirel cage type, having flanges I!and [8 for clamping the rotor laminations- It co-operates with a statorstructure I9 held in a motor frame, which may include thelowerportionifl and upper portion 2! connected as by sheet metal;cylindrical DOT.- tion. 22. Portions 2 and 2| serve, as by bolts or,-rivets,,to clamp the stator laminations together. The frame structure2ll- -2l-22 may be ranged to be supported by, the aid of the upperrelation to the other parts of the pump structure.

This invention possesses many other advantages, and has other objectswhich may be made more easily apparent from a consideration of anembodiment of the invention shown in the drawing accompanying andforming part of the present specification. This form, which illustratesthe general principles of the invention, will now be described indetail; but it is to be understood that this detailed description is notto be taken in a limiting sense, since the scope of the invention isbest defined by the appended'claims.

Referring to the drawing:

The single figure is a longitudinal sectional view of an electric motorstructure embodying the invention, a part of the axial length of themotor being broken away to reduce the size of the figure.

In the form of the invention. illustrated, a vertical motor arrangementis disclosed. The rotor structure I of the motor is shown as carried bya hollow motor shaft 2. This hollow shaft is shown as provided with athreaded extremity 3 for attaching a coupling member 5, as by the aid ofthe shoulder 4 on the shaft 2, and the nuts 6 engaging the threadedextremity, coup-ling memappropriately supported on a base member orsupport 23, adapted to be mounted on top of the pump structure".

The upper portion 21 of the frame carries an end bell or bracket 2 4,which is shown as provided with an inwardly directed defleeting member 35 and with one or more apertures 3 6 for aircirculation. U I

In H the present instance the rotary parts of the pump, such as pu'mprunners, etc., are arbearing structure of the electric motor. Thus,

. this bearing structure is of the ball thrustbearing ber 5 beingsecured against rotation on shaft 3 type, including a seriesof balls 25.The inner race 26 is shown as carried by a reduced exteni 21 vi a e unamember 5- T e u gre 28 is suptort 'me cylindrical support 29, shown assplines at so in theinterior of a cup-like guide 3| formed integrallywith the end bell or a e U The vertical adjustment ofthe position of thethrust bearing structure makes it possible accurately to adjust theposition of the pump runners supported on shaft i3 below the motor. Thiscan be accomplished while the motor is in operation by the aid -ofthe'structure now to be described. a

Thus, the upper end of the cylindrical race support 29 is exteriorlythreaded. This thread restricted from rotation by theaid of the spline-30. After adjustment, the nut 32 maybe locked, as 'bywa 'screw engagingsplit portions of the nut 32, for urging these split portions together-'ranged to be covered by a sheet metal dome-' shaped cover 31. Thissheet metal cover has a lower edge resting upon the top of flange 33. It

may be provided with several recesses 311 having horizontal walls 38 foraccommodation of fasteni ing screws 381, passing through the walls 38and engaging the top flange 33. I i p a 7 Provisions are made forproviding a lubricant,.

such as oil, for the thrust bearing structure. For

this purpose a lubricant well 39 is provided in the bell 24. Thus, asleeve 40, surrounding shaft 2 and extending upwardly past the bearingstructure, is fastened within the hub 41 of flange 33 of'the end bell24. This sleeve 49 co-operates with-the exterior wall 42 of bell 24 toformthe well 39. This well is adapted to carry lubricant to about thelevel 43, so that the bearing structure -26-28 is submerged when themotor is not operating. In this way, the bearing will not be exposed tocorrosion, even over long periods of inactivity of the motor.

Lubricant may be supplied to well 39 through an opening, shown as closedby the 'plug 45 at the right hand portion of the figure. This plug isaccommodated in a threaded aperture 46 in a sloping wall 41 of arecess48 in the outer wall 42, and carries an extension 49 extendingsubstantially below the normal level '43 of the lubricant. The extension49 functions as a dip stick; for, when the plug andextension are removedfrom the lubricant well, the depth of lubricant in the well may beascertained from an examination of the stick. By providing this recess,external projections such as plugs are avoided. The, slanting wall 41joins the outer wall 42 and a sloping wall 50 extending above thelubricant well 39- at the place where plug 45 is located.

In order to permit oil to pass inwardly of the guide 3'! to thebearingstructure, one or more apertures 5| may be-p-rovided 'at thebottom of the guide. An oil metering device 52- is supportedappropriately upon an inner'shoulder 53 of the guide 3| and beneath thecylindrical support 29. It-may extend radiallyinwardly to contact .withthe sleeve 40, and may be provided with one or more restricted apertures54 serving as an-oil:-

'metering device. a The oil is arranged to pass'through the meter- 'ingapertures 54 into the space between the inner -and outer'races '26 and28. Thence the oil is thrown upwardly by rotation of the bearing ele:-ments 25-26 into a chamber 55 formed between the depending flange 56 ofthe coupling member 5 and the hub 51 thereof. Also, if desired, a screenmember 58 may be disposed beneath the metering device 52. V

' The oil progresses: past the balls 25 into the chamber 55; thenceradially outwardly through one or more radial apertures 59 in flange 56and '--radial apertures fill in the cylindrical support 29; throughapertures 6| in the guide member 3! to a space 62 above the lubricantwell 39. 'By appropriate choice of sizes-of the apertures 59, 69, andBI, the vertical adjustment of the shaft structure does not interferewith thepassage of the lubricant backto the well 39. The lubricantmay bewithdrawn at will from the well through an aperture closed by a plug 63.In this connection it is to be noted that the amount of lubricant in thewell is large as compared to the quantity passed through the bearingwhen 75 0f rotation and in .the'vertical guiding apertures the motoroperating. Thus the lever 43 of the lubricant is substantially the samewith the motor operating or not. 7

The space 62 extends above the top wall 64 of the well. This top wallextends over the entire well and is joined to the sloping wall 59. Thistop 3 wall 63 has several apertures or openings 64 extending through it,across which are disposed fllter pads 65, of felt or the like. The oilasit enters the space B2.will pass through the filter pads ,55 into well-39; thus, foreign matter is strained from the lubricant. The top wall 33of the end bell 24 may also be provided with a number of openings 66 forinspection purposes, and to permit cleaning and replacement of pads 65.These openings may be closed by cover members 61. V v a In order to makeit possible to view the circulation of the oil while the apparatus is inopera- .tion, as wellas to note the level of the oil in the well,whether the apparatus is operating or not, .a transparent cover 68 isprovided. This cover may be made of some plastic molded material,

such as Catalan, and is shown as threaded into an interiorlythreaded'boss B9 projecting from the wall 42. Opposite the cover member68 there is a supplemental aperture or by-pass 19 in wall 42, leadinfrom the space 52, as well as an aper- Wm H leading into th lubricantwell 39.

lubricant extends through aperture H into the As clearly shown in thedrawing, the body of transparent cover 5B, so that'the level of thesurface 43 of the lubricant may be readily observed, and the quantity oflubricant in well 39 may be estimatedwithout the necessity of using thedip stick 4549. When the motor is running, the rapid rotation of theparts 25--26 of the bearing structure will create turbulence of that oilwithin'the guide 29 and above the plate 52, causing this oil to'rise inspace 55. Thence it is thrown out through openings 59, 60, and GI intospace 62 onto the filter pads 65. However, it is to be understood thatthe rate of this flow is controlled by metering openings 54. I

The passage ofthe oil through pads 65 is relatively slow, hence the oilaccumulates to a suflicient depth in space 62 for a part of the oil toflow through the small by-pass port 10 and join the main body oflubricant in well 39 through the space provided in cover 68. Thus, byobserving through cover 68, this passage of oil from port 8 is providedwith a plurality of radial arms 12, each of which carries a. pawl pin13. Thesepawl pins'13'are intended to co-operate with a series ofratchet teeth 14 disposed annularly below the pins 13 and supported ason a collar 15 threaded into the top of the support 29. The ratchetteeth 14, being stationary, will permit rotation of .the

coupling member ,8. and, therefore,.of the shaft structure, in but onedirection. This is accomplished by thefact that the lower ends of thepawl pins 13 arejurged upwardly along the slanting sides of the teethfor the permitted direction in the arms 12. A reverse rotation isprevented by the pins 12 abutting the abrupt shoulders of the teeth I4.

In order to prevent the pawl pins 'I3'from being entirely disengagedfrom the arms 12, a restraining disc I6 is provided, extending radiallyfrom coupling member 8 and above the pins 13. This restraining disc 16limits the upward movement of the pins. It may be fastened as by thescrews I to an appropriate shoulder formed on the coupling member 8.

The lower bearing structure for the shaft assembly is of the radialtype. It includes a plurality of balls 18 and an inner race 19 carriedby the lower extremity of the hollow shaft 2. The outer race 80 may beaccommodated in a vertically xtendin cylindrical flange 8| integral withthe bottom Wall 82 of the base 23. Flange 8| serves to restrain thebearing structure 18- 19-80 radially, but allows the structure to movefreely in an axial direction to accommodate its position to that of theupper bearing structure 25--26-28.

In this case, also, a lubricant well 83 is provided having a drainingaperture closed by a plug 84. The level 85 of the lubricant is shown inthis instance also as being substantially at the top of the races 19 and80, so that the bearing is submerged in the lubricant when the motor isnot operating.

The top of the lubricant well is formed by a wall 86 having an upwardlyinclined portion 81, carrying an upright cylindrical extension 88adaptedto telescope within a space 89 defined by the flange 98 of aguard member 9|. This guard member 9| is; carried by the shaft 2. By theinterengagement of the elements 88 and 98, the vertical adjustment ofthe shaft structure is permitted, while at the same time the lubricantwell is kept covered. In this way, in spite of the rotation of the rotorstructure I, the lubricant vapors are not carried off.

The member 9| has a flange-like extension 92 forming a chamber 93 abovethe balls 18. One or more radial apertures 94 in the flange 92 permitsthe passage of lubricant from the chamber 93 to the lubricant well 83;However, in order to make it possible to inspect the circulation of theoil during operation, or to determine the quantity of oil in the well atany time, a transparent cover member 95 similar to the cover member 68is provided; This transparent cover member is shown as threaded into theinternally threaded boss 96 of the base member 23. The wall for thelubricant Well is provided with an opening 91 opposite the cover 95, anda radial passage 98 is provided in the top wall 86 of the lubricantwell. This passage is in communication with the space above the bearingstructure,

its outer end opening opposite the cover 95. The

lubricant flowing back intoethej well 83, after passing upwardly throughbearing |8'|9--80, must pass through the passage 98, down back of thecover 95, and through the opening 91. This circulation can be readilyviewed through the cover 95.

An oil metering device 99, similar to that disclosed in connection withthe upper bearing, may also be provided. Thus, the member 99 is shown asof disc form and extendingbeneath the bearing races '59 and 80. It maybe fastened, as by screws I88, to the upper surface of the hub IIlI,which also serves to support the sleeve I02 defining the inner wall ofthe lubricant chamber 83. A screen I03 is shown extending below the 6metering member 99. 'I'hismetering member, as before, may be providedwith one or more metering apertures I04.

Axial adjustment of cylindrical race support 29 by means of nut 32causes shaft 2, together with all connected parts, to move axially.Thus, rotor I is moved vertically with respect to the stator I9, theaxial position of member 9| with respect to extension 88 is altered, andthe bearin structure I8-|98Il moves axially in its guide flange 8|.Also, shaft I3, which carries the pump runners, is correspondinglymoved. It is, of course, possible to adjust the relative positions ofshafts 2 and I3 by means of nut I4, and this serves to position the pumprunners when the pump is not operating, as well as to alter the positionof the.

runners with respect to the rotor. However, due to the various forcesexerted while the pump is in operation, such adjustment of the pumprunners is only approximate; but, by providing an adjustment means whichmay be manipulated while the pump is running, a more accurate ad-J'ustment of the position of the pump runners is possible, resulting inincreased operating efficiency.

Provisions are made in the present instance to supply a lubricant to thepump shaft bearings extending below the electric motor. This is madeeffective only While the motor is in operation. For this purpose asolenoid operatedvalve structure I05 is provided. This valve structureis operated by a solenoid connected to the mains I06, in parallel withthe motor mains, and controlled by the same switching mechanism. Thstructure I85 includes a hollow downwardly projecting threaded extensionIIl'l, engaging in a boss I98 formed in the bottom wall I89 of a recessformed in the lubricant top wall 86. The solenoid plunger III] carries aValve closure III guided in extension I81, and co-operating with a valveseat II2. This valve seat |I2 has a port 3 extending between thlubricant chamber 83 and a supply chamber H4. This supply chamber H4 isarranged to pass oil by gravity through the pipe and fittings H5 to thelower bearings, through a drip device H6. The valve seat H2 is shown inthis instance as threaded into a Wall II'I forming an.

extension of the lower wall of the lubricant wel183. c

Whatis claimed is:

1. In a device of the character described, a vertical shaft, a bearingstructure for the shaft, a closed frame for said structure, there beinga lubricant well communicating with the bearing structure above andbelow it, said lubricant being passed upwardly through the structure anddropping back into the well, a filter device upon which said lubricantflows and disposed above the well, and a transparent cover for the framefor viewing the lubricant above and below said filter device.

2. In a" device of the character described, a vertical shaft, a bearingstructure for the shaft, a closed frame for said structure, there beinga lubricant well communicating with the bearing structure above andbelow it, said lubricant being passed upwardly through the structure anddropping back into the well, means forming an open ing, said openpassageway being directed toward visible. i ,4. Ina support for avertical shaft, a bearing structure having rolling elements andracestherefor, means forming a lubricant well about said structure, meansforming a stationary wall below said structure, said wall having one orthe, covertopermitiviewing of the flow of lubricant through saidpassageway.

3. In a support for a vertical shaft, abearing structure having rollingelements and races therefor, means forming a lubricant well about saidstructure, means forming a stationar wall below said structure, saidwall havin one or more restricted apertures establishing communicationbetween the well and thespace between the races, the rotation of thebearing parts serving to pass lubricant upwardly through the spacebetween the races, means forming a passage for returning to the well thelubricant which has passed upwardly through said space, and atransparent member through which the returning lubricant is morerestrictedapertures establishing communication between the well and thespace, between the races, the rotation of the bearing parts serving topass lubricant upwardly through thespace between the races, meansforming a passage for returning to the well the lubricant which has',passed' upwardly through said space, said well forming means includinga transparentmember extending transversely of ,the liquid level so thatsaid level is visible therethrough, and means to return at least aportion of the lubricant, which passes upwardly through the bearing,past said member to the well, including a passageway directed toward themember to permit viewing of the flow of lubricant.

5. In a support for a vertical shaft, a bearing structure having rollingelements and races therefor, means forming a lubricant well about saidstructure, means forming a stationary wall below said structure, saidwall having one or more restricted apertures establishing communi cationbetween the well and the space below the races, therotation of thebearing parts serving to'pass lubricant upwardly through the spacebetween the races, means forming a passage for returning to the well thelubricant which has passed upwardly through said space, and atransparent member through which the returning lubricant is visible, thecapacity of said well being large with respectto the amount of lubricantpassed through the bearing, whereby the lubricant level in the wellis'substantially constant regardless of rotation of the bearing.-

6. In support for a vertical shaft, a bearing structure having rollingelements and races therefor, means forming a lubricant well about saidstructure, means forming a stationary wall .below said structure, saidwall having one or morerestricted apertures establishing communicationbetween the well and the space between the races, the rotation of thebearing parts serving to pass lubricant upwardly through the space 7between the races, means forming a passage for returning to the well thelubricant which has passed upwardly through said space, means forming asupplemental passag for returning part of the lubricant to the well,said supple-' structure having rolling elements and races therefor,means forming a lubricant'well about between the races, means forming apassage for returning to the well thelubricant which has passed upwardlythrough said space, said well forming means including a transparentmember extending transversely of the liquid level, so that {said levelis visible ,therethrough, and means forming a supplemental passageforreturning part of the lubricant to the well, said supplementalpassage having atermination above v the level of the lubricant in thewell and visible through the transparent member,

for, means forming a lubricant wellabout said 8. In asupport for'a-vertical shaft, a bearing structure having rolling elements and racestherestructure, means forming a stationary wall below said structure,said wall having one or more restricted apertures establishingcommunication between the well and the space between the races, therotation of the'bearing parts serving to pass lubricant upwardly throughthe space between the races, means defining a space above the well, saidmeans including a wall above the lubricant in the well, there beingapertures, including filtering means, in said wall for passing lubricantfromsaidspace to the well, means for passing lubricant from said bearinginto said space, means forming a by-pass port above said wall to permitlubricant to return to the well,- and means for viewing said port. I V

9. In a support for a vertical shaft, a bearing structure having rollingelements and races therefor, means forming a lubricant well about saidstructure, means establishing restricted communication between said welland the space between said races, means passing lubricant from said saidspace, and means causing at least a portion of said returning liquid topass said transparent membenwhereby the amount of lubricant in the welland the passage of lubricant through the bearing may be determined.

10; In a support for a vertical shaft, a bearing structure havingrolling elements and races therefor, means forming a lubricant wellabout said structure, said structure being below the level of thelubricant in said well, 'means admitting a restricted quantity oflubricant from the well to the space'between the races, the rotation ofthe bearing parts causing said lubricant to pass upwardly through saidspace, a transparent member in said well forming means extendingtransversely of the lubricant level in the well, as well as above'andbelow said level, means forming a passage for returning to the well thelubricant which has passed upwardly through said space,

and means causing at least a portion of said returning liquid to passsaid transparent member, whereby the amount of lubricant in the well andthe passage of lubricant through the bearin may be determined.

THOMAS o. MYERS.

